Orange Vegan Scones (gluten free)

I freaking love baking and making desserts. It fascinates me; the reaction of ingredients with them all. So many things affect the result, and when I get familiar with them’ lil tricks I feel like the Wizard of Oz. Baking. Dessert. Pastry – you have my heart.

I made these Vegan Orange Scones this morning for a catering job I had. I served them with cashew Chantilly crema. They were divine! I recommend eating them on the same day you bake them, they will loose their texture and become soft the next day.

Vegan and Gluten Free Orange Scones

Ingredients– 1.5 Cup of All Purpose Flour from Bob Red Mill (stick to thi brand for this recipe)
– 3/4 C of Oat Flour + 1/3 Cup more for Dusting and drying the batter
– 2.25 Tsp of Baking Powder
– 1 Tsp of Baking Soda
– 2 Tbsp of Turbinado Sugar
– 1.5 oz of Maple Syrup
– 1/4 Orange Peel from an Orange (Remove the orange peel with a knife, make sure not to get the white pith, if you get a bit is ok. Slice it very thin, then trow it in a pot with .5C of boiling water for about 2 minutes. Drain the water and reserve peel.
– 1/2 Tsp Orange Zest
– 1/4 C of Frozen Coconut Oil
– 3/4 C of Rice Milk
– 3/4 Tsp of Apple Cider
– 1 to 2 Tbsp of Orange Juice
– 1 Tbsp of Vanilla Extract
– 1/2 Tsp of Almond Extract

Directions– Preheat oven to 450′ F. Line two oven tray sheets with parchment.
– Freeze coconut oil in a plastic container, the flatter the better for you, but of a manageable size, like a round 16 oz cup.
– In a separate bowl, add the milk and the apple cider. Whisk and wait about 5 minutes
– In another bowl, whisk all dry ingredients + the orange peel already boiled and the orange zest.
– Go back to the bowl with the milk and vinegar and add the maple syrup, the orange juice, vanilla, and almond extract. Whisk and set aside.
– Remove the coconut oil from the freezer, and turn it up side down to run it through water so it can unstick from the bowl. Then chop it into tiny pieces. Add it to the dry ingredients bowl.
– Use your hands and try mixing it all up. Don’t worry of the oil doesn’t break down, you actually want it whole – not melted.
– Add the liquid solution and mix with spatula. If the batter is too sticky add 1/4 C more of oat flour. You want to be able to manipulate it but it can be dry.
– Transfer the batter to a dusted surface, make a slab of about 1.5″ thick. Then cut in desired shapes. Note that the scones will expand 3 fold their size, so be mindful of your shape and size and oven tray space.
– Transfer to the oven tray, leaving enough space between each scone (about 2-3″) Brush with a combo of Maple Syrup + Orange Juice + Turbinado. About 1 oz of Each and 1 Tbsp of Sugar.
– Bake for 8 minutes, turn the tray, bake for 2 minutes more
**I sandwiched orange slices between the batter when making my slab!